Artist with Brother-In-Law Scott, in Alaska.

I really can't remember a time when I wasn't drawing or painting. I remember sitting for hours at my grandmother's house with my cousin, Steve, drawing figures from the DC comic books. My parents encouraged me when they gave me a section of our basement to serve as my first "studio". From there I experimented with all forms including oil, watercolor, pastel and pen and ink. Formal study has been limited to classes while in school and several semesters in the art department at Purdue University. Most of my painting skill has come from hours in museums, reading and studying the masters as well as contemporary painters.

I tend to be impatient when it comes to formal study as "I just want to paint". I am determined to study the works of many painters and not concentrate in any particular style or technique. It is extremely important to me that my work is my own, and not a slightly altered version of a particular painter. Every painting is an adventure and a learning experience. Even though I always start with a charcoal drawing before committing a painting to canvas, rarely does a painting come out as I initially imagined. I change...I adjust...I try different techniques.

I work until it feels right; somehow I just know when to quit. I don't make a living from my painting which I believe affords me with a freedom to paint what I want, when I want, and how I want, without worrying about what is commercially acceptable. I'm fortunate in that I have the opportunity to travel a great deal. This allows me to find a wide variety of subjects. I find myself looking at things and determining how they would look on a canvas. It's all rather simple to me..."I just want to paint".